PCB yet to disclose details of Asif detention

PCB is yet to clear the air about the comments of its former officer Shafqat Naghmi that dope tainted pacer Mohd. Asif had a quantity of opium.

Written by Press Trust of India

Read Time: 2 mins

Karachi:

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is yet to clear the air about the comments of its former Chief Operating Officer Shafqat Naghmi that dope tainted pacer Mohammad Asif had a small quantity of opium when he was detained at the Dubai airport in June.

Although the PCB has slammed Naghmi for disclosing the details of the incident, the board is yet to deny that Asif was indeed carrying opium.

Naghmi headed a 3-member inquiry committee - other members being former director of human resources Nadeem Akram and director of cricket operations Zakir Khan - that was asked to look into the Dubai incident and recommend if Asif had violated the anti-doping policy of the board.

Naghmi while disclosing that Asif carried opium, however, said that the inquiry committee could not submit its report to the board for action against Asif.

The board had on Thursday issued a hard hitting statement against Naghmi for leaking out details without the report being sent to the board and even quoted Zakir as saying that he had not seen or signed any report recommending a 10 to 12 matches ban and a fine of around six million rupees on Asif.

The PCB has also avoided making any direct comment on Naghmi's disclosure that Asif carried small quantity of opium. Asif is due to appear before the drugs inquiry tribunal of the Indian Premiere League on November 29 in connection with his positive dope test during the inaugural IPL.

But sources said the new PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt and coach Intikhab Alam were keen to find a way out to clear Asif of the doping charges so that he could play for Pakistan again and were very upset with Naghmi's disclosure about the opium.